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I started using The Six O’Clock Scramble for meal planning and organized shopping lists. I can alter the recipe to make it organic/NON-GMO. Most of the recipes use the slow cooker or can be made in under 30 minutes. If I make a big meal in the slow cooker, we can have leftovers for lunch and dinner the next day.

21st Thurs Dinner- Daddy Choice

22nd Fri Dinner- leftover rice and beans made into quesadillas

23rd Saturday– dinner with friends – sausage and peppers in rolls

24th Sunday – Slow Cooked Baslsamic Rosemary Chicken

25th Monday – open faced chicken sandwiches with gravy

26th Tuesday – Slow Cooked Vegetable Soup with biscuits

27th Wednesday – vegetable soup over rice

Dino hates burgers, but hubby loves them. Hubby is going back to nights so we had what we wanted for dinner tonight. It’s not my favorite, but Dino was happy with the hot dogs. I loved my potatoes and salad.

Potatoes: sliced, then coated with coconut oil. Then sprinkled sea salt and other seasonings on them, before baking them at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes. When taken out of oven, sprinkle shredded cheese on potatoes.

Sorry, forgot to take pics…but Dino and I LOVED them…so flipping good and what a great way to use leftover rice and beans.

I did take pics…but only of us hanging out by hubby’s fire pit…but it was too dark and my phone doesn’t take good pictures in the dark. We had a great time though

Now that I will be going to back to work soon and most likely helping Dino with his kindergarten homework I need to make more slow cooked meals and use leftovers for other meals. I made rosemary and balsamic slow cooked chicken. It really was simple…I doused the whole chicken in balsamic vinegar and covered with tons of rosemary…it tasted wonderful. Then I baked potatoes, broccoli, and green beans with coconut oil and seasoning. Together it was a great meal and we have tons of chicken for many leftover meals.

What a super easy meal to make. Coated carrots in coconut oil, honey, and lemon dill seasoning and sauteed on stove top. Then put chicken on bread and poured on homemade gravy. How did I make the gravy? Well I boiled some of the homemade chicken broth form the slow cooked chicken and added a ton of pancake mix…yup, that easy. Hubby insisted on some mac and cheese, but I didn’t have any. Dino was so tired from having a fun day with friends at the farm, but he had most of his food.

I was able to make three baggies of chicken gravy and three bags of chicken with veggies. Each bag is perfect for two people or three with small portions. Hopefully if I keep this up, I will have extra meals for when I am working late or can’t cook.

I decided to try Naturebox and do love it. Sure it’s a bit pricey, but you are getting darn good and healthy snacks and tons of variety. It teaches Dino there are more snacks than the ones he’s used to. After sampling each bag of snacks we probably ate a whole serving, so each of the snack bags I made could have had more in it or another bag. Not bad, right?

Another great slow cooker meal…I put only a BIT of dry lentils…too much and I get sick. Then I added couscous, sliced tomatoes, spinach, and fresh herbs and seasonings. After it was cooked, I added the previously cooked potatoes, carrots, and green beans.

It was so good and tasty…Dino loved it and plan on having it tomorrow with rice.

I am so excited for Dino, he’s a big boy now and on his way to learning.

I made a big batch of rice and sectioned them into smaller bags. I took one bag and mixed it with some leftover soup and topped it with colby cheese…SO GOOD. Dino just about licked the bowl clean.

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Yes, buying organic/NON-GMO is expensive. Until there is a big change in food production and what consumers buy, healthy choices will always be more expensive. If you want to start small with organic…here are some great tips.

LINKING UP WITH:

DID NOT PLAN AT ALL…between Anthony’s karate test and Balboa getting sick and needing to see a neurologist I just figured out each day as we go.

Dino was so proud to earn his yellow belt. Since this test was at 5:30, we ate pizza in the parking lot of the karate dojo. Dino loves his karate classes. Hopefully he will continue to be successful and learn more than just karate, he will learn how to be respectful and gentle.

We spent from 10 am to 6:30 pm in the vet office just to see a neurologist. It was worth the time (and money) though. Balboa does not have a brain tumor, he does have increased white blood cells, but not enough to be alarmed. Right now he is to continue his meds unless his seizures gets worse…then onto to steroids instead.

Thanks Mom and Dad for staying with me…

Dino loves watering my herbs, tomatoes, and lettuce. Even better he loves helping with the compost bin and looks forward to dumping leftovers in the bin and shaking it up.

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Yes, buying organic/NON-GMO is expensive. Until there is a big change in food production and what consumers buy, healthy choices will always be more expensive. If you want to start small with organic…here are some great tips.

Grilled Chicken and a salad makes for a great dinner…even if I’m the only one who eats it.

Tony totally loves the organic, local burgers. He had the bacon, cheeseburger and I had the portobello mushroom and swiss burger. I got two crab cakes, we roasted potatoes, and had more salad. Dino HATES burgers of any kind…so he had his chicken nuggets.

I LOVE fish and was so pleased that Hubby loved it too. Even Dino had some of the salmon. Of course chicken nuggets was his protein for dinner. I loved the wild rice and the veggies…the pre-mixed seasonings make a big difference in our meals. We enjoyed watching the family of birds in our tree…even Balboa was curious about the birds.

I didn’t have any breadcrumbs…but thanks Mom for the idea of using tortilla chips instead. They tasted great and I plan on using them again. I used local ground beef and added brocolli rabe to the sauce…Tony LOVED it. Even though Dino was sick…he ate every bite. At this point, we didn’t know what was wrong with him, but he was burning up and his face was getting swollen.

Turns out…Dino has a swollen salivary gland… Guess that can happen…really weird though.

Balboa is now on seizure medicine…hopefully it will ease the seizures..watching him go through the seizures breaks my heart.

Dinner was just leftover pasta, but Dino just wanted peanut butter and jelly.

Dino LOVED the couscous, beans, and veggies. He didn’t want any chicken, but had four servings of the couscous. What a healthy boy.

LOVE cooking beans in the slow cooker, it makes a fabulous sauce and all I have to do is throw the grains, rice, or pasta in at the end with the veggies.

I was able to reorganize my cabinets in our SMALL KITCHEN. We only have one cabinet for food…so I have to make it count. Buying bulk at Whole Foods…saves money and space. Please note…THE SUGAR IS NOT MINE…that is hubby’s.

Tonight was another leftover night…as Dino had karate. Tomorrow night he’s being tested for his yellow belt…fingers crossed he can handle his routine in front of all the other kids being tested and their parents.

Balboa has a neurological evaluation Friday morning, as his seizures seem to be getting worse. Please keep him in your prayers.

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Yes, buying organic/NON-GMO is expensive. Until there is a big change in food production and what consumers buy, healthy choices will always be more expensive. If you want to start small with organic…here are some great tips.

To me there is nothing better than homemade potato salad… I had chicken pesto burgers, Dino had organic hot dogs, Hubby had his hot dogs and burgers. We were all happy. Before that Hubby and Dino let off some fireworks in the driveway. I hid on the porch but captured all the pics.

We enjoyed a family bbq, my sister’s mother-in-law invited us and had a pool out for Dino. He loved her dog, Rocky. He was so excited that he looked like a wolf. I think he also understood that he was older and needed more kindness…Dino wanted to hug him goodbye and take a pic with him.

Dino spent to days with my parents, giving me time to hang out with my friend. I was able to buy better fitting bras, since I lost tons of inches, and more workout clothes.

Hubby and I were alone for our dinner, Balboa enjoyed the peace and quiet. We grilled chicken and made couscous with spinach. I used a lemon dill seasoning, but I think there was pepper in the mix…it was TOO HOT… Of course Hubby thought it was fine, I needed extra water with my dinner.

There is nothing better than rice and beans… This time instead of soaking the beans over night…put them in the slow cooker. I put three times the amount of water that I had in pinto beans. I added tons of seasoning and fresh basil and cilantro. Once the beans were soft, I added the jasmine rice and veggies…the water had turned into a delicious sauce, which added tons of flavor to the rice and veggies.

It was a hectic day, poor Balboa had a seizure. We don’t know if it’s from his shots, the heat, or his liver. We are going to keep a close eye on him. I am praying it was just a one time incident.

I cut up the grilled chicken from two nights ago, added some mayo, fresh basil, walnuts, and sliced avocado. Dino now has karate on Wednesdays too! He is doing so well, we wanted him to have two days of it. Therefore we had a quick meal before we went to karate. He also had a container of strawberry almond yogurt. After karate and after Daddy got home from the vet, he quickly grilled his and our hot dogs.

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So Dino has been better about eating more almonds and cashews, I am trying to get him to eat some walnuts too. I have been mixing a small amount of the protein mix into his milk.

He loves coconut and almond yogurt, but doesn’t like granola. I am trying to change that.

I’ve also been making trail mixes…using a variety of…annie’s bunny crackers, raisins, chocolate chips, cashews, and chocolate almonds. There are now NON-GMO marshmallows, once they are at Whole foods, I will buy them.

Any other suggestions for trail mix ingredients?

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Yes, buying organic/NON-GMO is expensive. Until there is a big change in food production and what consumers buy, healthy choices will always be more expensive. If you want to start small with organic…here are some great tips.

Always a simple but favorite dinner, chicken sausage and veggies cooked in a cast iron skillet. Then jasmine rice seasoned, cooked, then mixed with the sausage and veggies.

Sorry, no pics. We were going to have grilled chicken, but after the work week and me still being sick, Hubby decided to order takeout. I am glad he did…I needed a break.

We had a great day at home, Dino played in the pool, which is suddenly too small for him.

I used the grill all on my own. I know, it’s sad, but I’, scared of grilled. But I did it and the chicken and veggies came out awesome. I seasoned and folded the veggies in tin foil and placed on the grill. They came out great.

I LOVE polenta and may need an intervention. It;s just so cheap, easy, and yummy.

Again, no pics, sorry. We had leftover chicken and veggies. I made my own gravy/seasoning with some water, olive oil, and garlic and herb mix. It came out great and poured it over the chicken for Dino and me.

We had a great day at the beach with my friend Cathy and her daughter Cathleen. Dino loves Cathleen, though I want to kick myself for not getting pics of them playing in the water. By the time we took pics, poor Cathleen was ready for a nap. Once happy to smile at Dino, she just wanted to go home.

By the end of the day, I didn’t want to do anything. I got badly burnt on my back (blame hubby for not putting enough sun screen on before I left). Dino looks totally exhausted…because he was even though he denied it over and over.

Tonight we had one of hubs favorite meals. Tilapia, with potatoes and carrots. As usual, I sprinkled pancake mix on top of the fish to give it that “breaded feel” without the mess and me messing it all up. (I put TOO MUCH on this time…but with a bit of water it was fine) This works and tastes so good. I think the key is LOTS of seasoning…which is locked in by the mix on top.

LI need some ideas.

Lately Dino has not been eating a good breakfast, this is going to be a problem when he starts kindergarten. If school starts at nine, he needs to be on the bus about 8:30…so he NEEDS to eat a filling and healthy breakfast. He likes hard boiled eggs, buttered toast, oatmeal, and cereal…but not all the time. If he ate peanut butter on his toast I’d be so happy.

I tried a NON-GMO protein shake/meal replacement, I LOVE it…and will use it every morning starting in the fall. Dino didn’t like it that much, but I put half a cup of mix into his milk and he was more receptive to that. It has TONS of protein and will fill him up. (the kids one didn’t have any protein-only veggies…which he eats like crazy) I’m hoping though that when he realizes how much he has to do at school, he WILL want to eat more.

Any tips for ideas on how I can get Dino to eat a better breakfast?

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Yes, buying organic/NON-GMO is expensive. Until there is a big change in food production and what consumers buy, healthy choices will always be more expensive. If you want to start small with organic…here are some great tips.

It may take a bit longer to soak and then cook dry beans, but it’s healthier. Besides instead of using pre-seasoned garbage, I use fresh herbs and organic seasoning and the taste is amazing and natural…the way it should be.

To start off the day, it was Dino’s preschool graduation…sniffles. My big boy is one step closer to kindergarten.

Then we had the leftover rice and beans using them to make nachos…I layered them on tortilla chips with some sour cream and shredded cheese…SO GOOD

First we had Karate…this session was fun. Dino learned how to spar with the other kids. He’s great at kicking and punching and can even take a hit, but needs to learn to block.

This weekend was Hubby’s family camping with his boy scout troop. The same troop he was in as a kid, he now volunteers with and often runs many events. We tried to sleep over with Dino, but with the fire pit so close to our tent, Dino couldn’t sleep. They do skits around the campfire and Dino wanted to go to bed. This is a kid that knows what he wants and when he’s tired he wants to go to bed now. Thankfully the site was pretty close to our home, Dino and I drove back home…in the dark…that sh&t was scary.

Next time we’ll try camping with just the three of us or maybe another family…so Dino could sleep when he wants.

THIS IS MY NEW FAVORITE. It’s cheep, healthy, and delicious. It takes just like baked ziti…but fills you up. Polenta will take on whatever flavors you mix into it…so it’s perfection.

this was a BIG hit. I seasoned the tilapia with a Whole Food preseaoned mix (garlic and herbs) and once it was in the cast iron skillet, I sprinkled pancake mix on it…giving it a “breaded” feel. Hubby LOVED it and Dino ate it all.

Nothing better than grilled chicken. As always I season the corn and place in a bag…then grill…much better that way. We had two plates of grilled chicken and corn, but I only took a pic of one. A truly healthy meal…full of protein..so it builds muscle and keeps up lean.

We had leftover chicken for lunch-chicken and avocado salad sandwiches… LOVED IT!

so good…after cooking the polenta, I scooped it into the baking pan. Then layered pesto chicken sausage, then sauce, and topped it all with shredded mozzarella cheese. Dino and I loved it…Hubby, well we’ll see if he likes it.

Is there an organic product that you REALLY like or want to try? Have a favorite organic recipe?

Yes, buying organic/NON-GMO is expensive. Until there is a big change in food production and what consumers buy, healthy choices will always be more expensive. If you want to start small with organic…here are some great tips.

5th Thurs Dinner Minnesota Wild Rice, chicken and Veggies From the Bulk Section at Whole Foods, I got Minnesota Wild Rice. adding lots of seasoning I followed the directions to cook. It is a chewy type of crunchy, and very yummy. Dino loved eating “WILD” rice and kept shaking his body saying it was making him WILD.

I seasoned the chicken and cut into smaller pieces. Then I added a half a bag of stir fry frozen veggies in with it and sprinkled on some shredded coconut. Yes, I’m in to coconut lately. It came out so darn good…Hubby didn’t like it, but Dino and I did.

7th Sat Dinner: Leftovers We had family over to celebrate Dino’s birthday. It was just a small gathering since we had the kid party last weekend. Since Daddy was working, we just had leftover chicken pork, rice, and veggies. Every Saturday, Dino takes karate. His teacher says he’s a natural, born to learn karate. In just a few weeks he got his second stripe. The teacher thinks next month Dino will be ready to test for his yellow belt.

8th Sun Dinner: Pasta, Sauce, turkeyballs it was a quiet day, stay at home day. Dino loved hanging out in the yard playing with his cars. He chose to eat peanut and butter sandwiches and a popsicle. I still made the pasta, sauce, and turkeyballs, but we’ll have them for Monday. I did make homemade popsicle with him. I bought silicone pop makers. We blended almond milk, bananas, and strawberries then poured them into the pop makers. After freezing them for a few hours, they were delicious.

9th Mon Dinner: coconut chicken, potatoes, carrots Since we had the pasta, sauce, and turkeyballs for dinner tonight, I still had to make the chicken. I sectioned it off and now have to sets of breaded coconut chicken. All I will have to do is make the grains and veggies.

10th Tues Dinner: sports skills – take out: Today was the last day of the sports skills class at the Little Gym. I am going to sign him up for the gymnastics class over the summer. He will truly enjoy that. He was so proud of his accomplishments and loved showing me what he learned. He loves his medal and we always celebrate with pizza and gelato.

Dino loves pepperoni pizza (he eats tons of fruits and veggies that I don’t mind his love of this topping). I prefer the pesto pizza. The best part is, we order the personal sized pizzas, take half for dinner and half for lunch the next day.

11th Wed Dinner: leftoversTonight was coconut chicken, baked potatoes, and carrots. Hubby has down right refused to eat anything organic…saying it tastes yucky. Poor dude has no clue that the “flavor” he is eating is all chemicals created in a lab. All I can do is make sure Dino and I eat healthy and real food.

I marinate the chicken with olive oil, water, coconut shreds, and herbs/seasoning. I coat the chicken in panko and shredded coconut…it just adds a superb flavor. The best part is having it for leftovers with sliced avocado…hmmm..the flavor is awesome. .

I’m going to introduce nuts and granola to Dino. My stomach doesn’t always do great with nuts, but a small dose should be fine and I need more snack ideas for Dino.

What are your favorite healthy snacks?

Yes, buying organic/NON-GMO is expensive. Until there is a big change in food production and what consumers buy, healthy choices will always be more expensive. If you want to start small with organic…here are some great tips.

homemade hummus is pretty easy and healthy. I loved making it. Here’s some great hummus recipesI made our hummus with dried chickpeas, I soaked them overnight in TONS of water, cooked them the next day with lots of seasoning then added our ingredients. I added some pesto, cilantro, and dill. Wonder what I will try next time?

31st Sat Dinnerleftovers This was the day of Dino’s birthday party, I was happy to whip up leftovers and eat whatever, but hubby kindly got burgers and chicken fingers form our favorite place. The cake was from Stop and Shop, sadly it was NOT GMO free… IT would have cost too much. The snacks and juice I got for the party were all NON-GMO though.

1st Sun Dinner pasta, sauce, leftover turkey meatballs – Love when I have leftovers I can incorporate into another meal.

2nd Mon Dinner coconut chicken, potatoes, carrots, squash – DID I get a picture of this? NOPE. 3rd Tues Dinner sports skills night AND DINO’s BDAY Dino LOVED going out on his b-day. He chose our favorite pizza place (we had the leftovers for lunch) and had gelato for his bday dessert. He always orders the pepperoni pizza, I got the pesto pizza.

4th Wed Dinnerleftovers Sometimes, leftovers just don’t cut it…and all you want is an apple with peanut butter.

Leslie from Pampers, Play dates, and Parties asked that I show some healthy snacks I have for Dino… Thanks for the idea Leslie

While I want Dino to eat organic and NON-GMO, I know that we still need chocolate and sweets occasionally. If they are made from safe foods then I will buy them.

I always have fruit that Dino can get anytime he wants…bananas, raisins, apples, pears… I love to put peanut butter on anything…

Some of our favorite snacks are…

Yes, buying organic/NON-GMO is expensive. Until there is a big change in food production and what consumers buy, healthy choices will always be more expensive. If you want to start small with organic…here are some great tips.

22nd Thurs Dinner:homemade pizza OOOOPS, forgot to buy shredded cheese and pepperoni for the pizza. Of course our local grocery store didn’t have organic and GMO free cheese and pepperoni, but they did have these pizzas. These were pretty good, but not as great as homemade pizza…but free of harmful ingredients.

25th Sunday – Pasta, Sauce, and turkey meatballs we went to my parents house, and had a wonderful bbq there. My dad’s in the hospital after having double knee surgery, so we visited him.

26th Monday –hot dogs (organic) fries, and mac and cheese had the coconut chicken with leftover rice and veggies

I mixed parmesean flavored panko with coconut flakes and carribean seasoning. I coated the cutlets in the mixture and baked in the oven at 350 for about 30 min. They came out so darn good…so tasty and crispy…and very healthy. Paired with the leftover rice and veggies…what a great meal.

27th Tuesday sports skills…so takeout once again It’s our little tradition and I LOVE it. This time I made the pizza and it was delicious once again.

I have tons of seasoning in the small cabinet above our stove and fresh herbs in our freezer. Buying the grains, beans, and rice in bulk saves a TON of money.

All our snacks for Anthony are organic and GMO free…(I’m running low, the basket is usually fuller than this)

In our fridge/freezer there are still a few items that are Non-organic and filled with GMOS…those are hubby’s. Most of the fruits, veggies, homemade meals, snacks, and condiments are all organic/NON-GMO. Anthony knows he is more than welcome to get fruits, veggies, dried mango slices, cheese sticks, and other healthy snacks.

Eating NON-GMO doesn’t mean no flavor and boring foods. Just THE opposite, you are promised REAL FOODS. Here are some of the NON-GMO foods we have in our home.

Yes, buying organic/NON-GMO is expensive. Until there is a big change in food production and what consumers buy, healthy choices will always be more expensive. If you want to start small with organic…here are some great tips.

LINKING UP WITH:

90% of the time, I cook the dinner/meal the night before. It’s easier that way and saves me time. I also started shopping on Wednesdays before I get Dino from daycare. My meal plans will be from Thursdays to Wednesdays to reflect my shopping schedule. When my schedule changes so will the meal plan days.15th Thurs Dinner grilled chicken, corn, peppers and onions with leftover barley16th Fri Dinner leftover chicken and barley17th Sat Dinner chicken sausage, veggies, and couscous18th Sun Dinner pasta, sauce, leftover meat and porkballs,19th Mon Dinner leftovers20th Tues Dinner Take Out Night/Sports Skills 21st Wed Dinner Rice, Beans, Veggies

8th Thurs Dinner: Corn on the cob, grilled chicken, and barley with veggies. We had parent orientation for kindergarten that night. So I made sure to marinate the chicken and season the corn ahead of time. Hubby just grilled the chicken and corn, and I heated up leftover barley. I was the only one who ate the barley…but the corn and chicken was a big hit.

Seasoning Corn: I melted some butter with seasoning. I rubbed each corn with the butter mixtured then placed it in the freezer bag then put it in the fridge. Before we were going to grill the corn, I ran the bag under warm water to make sure the butter seasongn was all over the corn…so easy and tasty.

9th Fri Dinner:Man, that chicken, veggie, and couscous dish was amazing. We loved it so much that we finished it off on Friday. Well, I have a bit saved for a small chicken salad sandwich!

10th Saturday– chicken sausage, veggies, and couscous: totally forgot I was hanging out with my friend and we were having dinner. Dino had leftover chicken tender and couscous. Sorry no pics

18th Sunday – Pasta, Sauce, and leftover Meatballs: Dino was so hungry he gobbled it all down.

12th Monday –leftovers. I made chicken sausage, jasmine rice, and string beans the night before so we could have it ready for dinner. It was beyond delicious and Dino scarfed it up.

14th Wednesday rice, beans, veggies – trying to save money and use the food in the freezer. Dino and I had leftover pea soup with the rice, chicken sausage, and string beans. It was amazing and perfect.

I won’ be posting pictures of lunches anymore. This week I just kept forgetting to take pics. As soon as I was done packing lunch and cleaning the kitchen, I just wanted to sit down and chill with Dino and Balboa. I will list all our lunches, but not include pics anymore. Dino’s Lunches:

white bread with ham and cheese and mayo

pizza from school

turkey, ham, cheese roll-ups, with guacamole and chips

chicken salad on bread

tuna salad on bread

Dino’s Snacks:

french toast with mango slices

grilled cheese with orange slices

chips and carrots with hummus

oatmeal with raisins and cranberries

apples, carrots, pears, or oranges

pretzels

cookies

homemade cake or brownies

Mommy’s Lunches:

white bread with turkey and cheese and mustard

turkey, ham, cheese roll-ups, with guacamole and chips

tuna and guacamole with chips

chicken and guacamole with chips

chicken salad or tuna salad on bread

Mommy’s Snacks:

cereal with almond milk and either banana or raisins

apples, carrots, pears, or oranges

pretzels

cookies

homemade cake or brownies

baked artichoke with melted butter

All foods I cook with and eat are NON-GMO verified or organic. It is expensive, but worth the piece of mind. I hope change is coming and REAL FOOD will no longer be expensive. I hope the food industries will all be required to list all their chemicals in food and therefore change their products.

UPDATE:

Vermont is going to be sued by the food industry…because they don’t want to label all the GMOS. This HAS to prove that they are hiding something…if all the ingredients were safe, why would this be a problem?